March 10th The way the playoff game between Weber State and MSU went on Saturday night makes me believe that Weber has a legit chance to take it all again this year.

Daviin Davis set the tone for the whole game with a monster double-pump dunk to get the 'Cats to a 2-0 lead. From then on Weber didn’t let up.

Midway through the first half they went on something like a 23-4 run. They led early in the half by more than 20, but we did not chant "up by 20" as tradition is we only chant it in the second half. Fortunately, Weber gave us several opportunities to chant it in the second half as well.

With the Wildcats stomping on the Bobcats the whole game, students felt comfortable yelling a variety of original, never-used-before chants. My personal favorite was when the score was 32 to 9 with 3:50 to play in the first half and Arturas Valeika had 11 points of his own, fans started chanting, "Valeika is winning."

I don't know how to explain how the Wildcats played so well. Maybe they were upset that Kellen McCoy did not get the newcomer of the year award, or that Valeika got snubbed for the best defensive player of the year, or maybe they just really wanted a third chance to beat NAU. All I know is it was obvious they came out of the gate with fire in their eyes and bolts of lightning coming out of their...Their defense on MSU's Carlos Taylor was tenacious and I had never seen their level of team intensity so high. Weber virtually looked unstoppable.

The only disappointment of the night was that Brock, aka Soulja Boy, was not there as a ball boy. I actually got to the game 48 minutes early to interview him for a blog. I was very let down when I noticed two new ball boys I had never seen before in his spot. I actually snuck down on the court to talk to them to see if they knew where he was. They said he was at a party instead!

I couldn't believe it. Maybe since he is no longer allowed to do his Soulja Boy dance at WSU games, he found other places to show off his skills. The point is I really hope this one game was a fluke and that we will see him a lot next year, Soulja Boy dance or no Soulja Boy dance. I've really enjoyed watching that kid grow up over the years. And let's all admit it. As good as he is at dancing, he's an even better ball boy!

March 5th Okay, so in a way I'm happy that Weber lost to NAU last week. Now we get to see one more home game this year. As much as I would have loved to, there is no way I would have been able to make the trip up to Portland to watch the second and third rounds of the BSCT. I'm so excited for this game on Saturday that I bought two tickets and am making my wife come with me. I found a babysitter and everything. I even made a deal with my wife that I'd go to a wedding reception on Friday if she would come with me to the game on Saturday.

I'm excited about having a first round game for a couple of reasons:

1 - I've really enjoyed watching the seniors on the team this year and I am excited to get to see them one last time.

2 - Even though winning the Big Sky Championship and going dancing now means that Weber will have to win three games in a row to three difficult opponents (MSU, NAU and probably PSU), I think starting the tournament with a home win might actually be better than getting a first round bye. A home court win means Weber will have momentum going into the semifinal and championship rounds. Sure they may be a little tired from playing one more game, but strong momentum can outlast fatigue, especially in a championship series.

So come on everybody get your tickets before they all sell out (yeah right - 12,000), and come watch as the Wildcats start their BSC-run with a home win over MSU. Let's give them the momentum they will need to win at home, win in Portland, and make it to the NCAA tourney!

February 25th Not to brag or anything, but on Senior Night, I may have been the reason the Wildcats came back from a ten-point first half deficit to ultimately beat Montana State by ten. That's right. I am taking credit for the win. I realize I am not the one who hit the free throws down the stretch or came up with big defensive stops when they were most important. I am, however, the one who got the thousands of fans in attendance into the action by winning free Fazoli's for everyone.

I arrived at the Dee Event's Center thirty minutes early when Ben Huppi, the guy in charge of the Fazoli's promotion, came over and asked me if I would do it. He said he wanted someone who was a good shot, because he really wanted someone to win the promotion. This was the last home game of the year and no one had won it yet. I told him he could count on me. He said I would be shooting during the first timeout after halftime. To win the Fazoli's promotion, one must make a layup, free throw and a three point shot all in succession without missing.

As the first half of the game unfolded and MSU was dominating Weber, effectively taking the crowd out of the game, I realized how important it was for me to win Fazoli's for the fans. I knew if I gave the fans something to be happy about, their enthusiasm would carry over into the game, and the Dee's famous Sixth Man would be on the 'Cats side once again. When halftime arrived and Weber was down ten points, the pressure of just how important it was I win began bearing down heavier and heavier on my shoulders. I was nervous.

At the beginning of the second half, Ben came and got me and we waited court-side for the first timeout. About five minutes into the half the timeout was called and Ben led me onto the court. My heart was racing. I knew how important what I was about to do was, but all I could think about was not missing the layup like many people before me had done.

I walked out to the basket, and when I got the thumbs up I threw up the layup. The ball bounced around the rim a couple of times, but I knew from the beginning it was going in. The next shot was the free throw. I walked up to the line, found my balance, dribbled the ball twice, paused, then dribbled once more, paused again, then focusing on the rim, I let the ball go. As soon as it left my finger tips I knew it was good. The ball barely caught the front of the rim and easily slid through the cylinder.

Ben threw the ball back out to me at the three point line. It was here I knew I could begin to get the crowd going again. Before I even thought about shooting my shot, I faced the student section and threw my hands up in the air, encouraging them to cheer. They yelled and screamed. I then faced the other side of the arena and did the same thing. They responded in kind. All the nervousness I felt before the first layup had faded. I felt confident. I knew I was going to make my shot and everyone in attendance was going home with free food. I then walked to the top of the three point line, took a dribble, and let it fly. As Hot Rod Hundley would have said, 'with a gentle push and a mild arch, the cow-hide globe hit home!" I pumped my fist and ran off the court with my index finger raised high in the air. The fans were going wild. I had done my job, and the fans were once again doing theirs. The only thing left was for the Purple and White to finish off the game, which they easily did with their fans enthusiastically cheering them on the whole way!

February 20th With Weber State getting swepped on their most recent road trip, and with J.P. and Billings not playing so hot, there hasn't been a whole lot for 'Cat fans to cheer about. Last week Weber went from possibly hosting the Big Sky tournament to tied for third place with MSU.

In a way, however, this most recent slump came at a good time. While Weber fans could have dug themselves in a hole of self pity, there has been a Wildcat who has given our fans a reason to be proud to be 'Cat fans again.

That wildcat is Lance Allred - D-League all-star for the number one team, The Stampede. Lance, who leads the league in double-doubles, was chosen to represent his team in the D-league all-star game. During the festivities Lance did an excellent job of representing the Purple & White by beating sharp shooter Morris Almond, of the Utah Flash, in an intense game of H.O.R.S.E. After the game, Lance summed up all your feelings by stating, "Oh, and never leave the white guy open."

Thanks Lance for stepping up when Weber fans needed you to the most. It has been a joy to watch you succeed in your professional career. We all know it is only a short time away until they call you up to the NBA and you start making the big bucks!

February 5th I finally went on my first Weber State Basketball road trip! It was only a short trip to Pocatello, and unfortunately it was in the Holt Arena, but it was still worth it-even though the 'Cats lost in a close one.

Everyone who was taking the bus met at the Alumni Center at 3:00 pm where we were given Sixth Man t-shirts, a lunch from Doolittle Deli, and our game tickets. A half hour later, after we loaded the bus with drinks, treats and a dozen old people, the rest of us filed in, filling the bus to over full capacity.

The ride up was good. There was lots of talk about the Big Sky-who would host the tournament, what Weber's final record would be, how important this ISU game was, etc. There was also lots of talk on random topics—the season premiere of Lost, what exactly an LOL-cano is, how much we missed my brother Micah, how President of the Purple Pak David Baker got his nickname, etc. The ride was pretty uneventful, except we did stop about 30 minutes out of Pocatello for a potty break. I guess some of the geriatrics forgot to take their Flomax before they left. (The oldies on the bus were actually some of the hippest fans on the bus) But it was all good; I needed to get up and stretch my legs.

We got to the old, beaten down Holt Arena around 6:30 and found our seats (which by the way, ISU made sure were the worst ones in the whole place!) It was while waiting for the game to start that I learned just how Pokey Pocatello actually is. The lead story on their local newspaper was titled Animals Found Dead, and reminded the locals of the Ligertown incident in 1995 which received national media attention. In case you weren't watching much CNN that year, let me tell you about Ligertown. In some sort of compound near Lava, Idaho, over a dozen lions and lion-tiger hybrids (also known as Ligers) mauled their owners and escaped! Now that is news! All I can say is the game was fun to watch, but that news article is what made the trip worth the time and money!

The game started at seven. I don't want to blog much about the game except to say I imagine it was somewhat reminiscent of the Ligertown incident. Weber didn't get killed, but lost a close one to the Bengals (a Bengal is a cat that could be compared to a Lion or Liger). I just wish it was the Wildcats that did the mauling and not the Bengals. The Big Sky referees sucked, but they sucked for both teams, so we won't use that as an excuse (for more on the suckyness of the refs go to wsubball.com's home page).

Half time was good. Wsubball.com founder, Willie Paige, for my pay for writing these blogs bought me some Bengal ice-cream. I will say this about Pocatello: They must take good care of their cows up there. That ice-cream was the bomb! By the way, thanks Willie. I'll take an Aggie ice-cream as pay when we go up to Logan next year.

The ride home was...well, let's just say it was okay. Remember when I said the bus was filled to over capacity? Well I wasn't exaggerating. We had one too many people on the bus, and on the way home I fell victim to the situation. The guy I was sitting next to decided he'd let the girl without a seat sit on his lap, so until we let two of the oldies off the bus early, things were cramped and a little more than uncomfortable for this happily married man.

Overall the whole road trip experience was awesome. I'm very glad I was able to do it. And I suggest that if you have never gone on the road to see our Weber State Wildcats play, you do it. We had over 100 in Pocatello and we sounded more like two to three hundred at times, especially when Jarmaine Nance hit the three to bring us within two and then when JP hit the two free-throws to tie it. I am way excited to go to Pokey next year, but think maybe next time I'll sit in the front with the old folks.

January 14th, 2008 I'd like to take some space on this blog to thank wsubball.com for giving me the opportunity to have a blog on its website.

Willie Paige, founder of wsubball.com has done a tremendous job with the site and has given Weber State fans an outlet to discover the greatness that Weber State basketball is.

Paige tells me that since its conception early last year, wsubball.com has had more than 400,000 hits, and this month alone might even reach 100,000 hits. The site has been exponentially increasing each month in popularity as it becomes more known. The site's first month, January of 2007, wsubball.com only had 6,000 hits. None of this surprises me, considering the 'Cats have had a great deal of success under second year coach Randy Rahe. Under his command, the 'Cats hosted and won the Big Sky Tournament last year and went on to play UCLA in the NCAA tournament. This year the 'Cats appear to be on the right path to repeat last year's success with a 2-1 Big Sky record.

The recent success is not the only reason Paige began his website dedicated to Weber State basketball. In an email interview I had with him, Paige said the sites that were out there were not sufficient enough to cover the 'Cats and their current and past success as a basketball program. Paige wrote the following when discussing his reasons for creating his site: "The school's site didn't and doesn't provide enough info about our basketball team. Also, the team's stats and historical info is very interesting and it is hard to find on the Internet."

I personally am grateful for Paige for creating this site and also for his continued efforts to keep it consistently updated. Paige told me that when he created the site he knew it would be a lot of work to keep it updated with news on games, recruiting, and other basketball related stories. I think he's done a tremendous job of doing this. I only hope Weber State's athletic website will take notes and follow Paige's lead on providing fans with new and up-to-date info on WSU basketball.

I am not the only fan who is pleased with wsubball.com and Paige's efforts to keep the site consistently updated. Dave Baker, president of the Purple Pak, believes the site is a good way to show the average person just how fun one can have as a Weber State basketball fan. Baker is the prime example of having fun at the games. Check out the pictures on the site from last year's season. It will be easy to spot him. He is the big guy at the Big Sky Tournament with his shirt off and a purple letter written across his belly.

Though myself and others like me love the site, I can only find one problem with it. In its early days, I visited the site two or three times a week to read Wildcat news, look at the recent pictures, and follow up on who the team was recruiting. Now I go there every day and waste hours a week playing the newly implemented WSU Arcade. That thing is so addicting that I only read the articles on the site well after I'm burnt out from playing games like Turkey Fling, Monkey Dive, and Dirt Bike.

Truth is this site has got me even more excited about Wildcat basketball, and I'm sure it has done the same for many more fans like me. So, on behalf of them, thank you Mr. Paige for doing a great job of promoting Weber State basketball and giving us an excuse to waste time at work!
For questions, comments, or thoughts, email me at mark@wsubball.com